Wire-cutting tool



Nov. 17, 1959 F. M. HART 2,912,756

WIRE-CUTTING TOOL Filed Dec. 6, 1957 sz /0 30 40 A my. a

TTORNEY United States Fatent i WIRE-CUTTING TOOL Frank M. Hart, Denver, Colo., assignor to Gates and Sons, Inc., Denver, Colo., a corporation of Colorado Application December 6, 1957, Serial No. 701,157

Claims. (Cl..30168)' This invention relates to cutting tools and, more particularly, to a wire-cutting tool particularly adapted for use in cutting wire form ties prior to stripping the forms from a concrete structure.

Wire form ties are widely used in building construction for holding and maintaining concrete forms in fixed spaced relation while the wet concrete is poured therebetween and sets. Some of the most popular wire form tie designs incorporate loops at each end which project beyond the outer surface of'the form between the individual panels or through slots therein where they are secured' by rods passing through the exposed portions of the loops. These rods are relatively easy to insert and function' 'to hold the form panels in place against the hydrostatic forces acting thereon from the wet concrete. Of course, the concrete presses the form panels lightly against the rods'which become bound tightly within the loops in the ties. As a result, therods are extremely difficult to extricate from the ties after the concrete has set and it is necessary to strip the forms therefrom. Thus, an important problem would be solved if a means could be 'fo'und for easily freeing the rods from 'the'ties'without having-to withdraw them from the closed loops.

Another problem is the excessive amount of time and labor ordinarily required to strip the forms from a concrete structure. At prevailing labor rates and in a highly competitive market, a few extra hours spent unnecessarily in stripping forms due to the difliculty encountered in extracting the rods can absorb the'profit which the contractor expected to realize.

Some cement contractors using wire ties on rod-type panel forms prefer to cut the ties to release the rods rather than to try and extricate them without opening the loops. Ordinary bladed cutting tools are unsatisfactory for this purpose, however, as both the rods and loops are curved which makes it extremely difiicult to hold the tool in place on the wire while it is being cut. Flier-like tools, such as pincers, can be used with some success although there is very little wire exposed to grip in the jaws and this also is a costly, time-consuming operation.

Breaking the loops by prying the rods away from the forms is entirely unsatisfactory as the rods bend, the form panels are broken and gouged, and the green concrete behind the forms is often damaged severely. The cost of replacing a bad wall or a few broken form panels can likewise do away with or considerably reduce any profit that might otherwise have been realized.

It is, therefore, the principal object of the present invention to provide a wire-cutting tool particularly suited for use in cutting wire form ties to free rods passed through loops formed therein.

A second object of the invention is to provide a wirecutting tool that will not slip off curved sections of wire and round rods passed therethrough.

Another object is to provide a tool for cutting wire concrete form ties used with rod-type panel forming systems that results in a substantial saving in the time 2,912,756 Patented Nov.- 17, 1959 ice 2 and effort customarily required to strip the forms from a concrete structure.

An additional object is the provision of a wire forin cutting tool that eliminates the necessity of trying to release the form rods from loops in the ties by the common expedient of withdrawing the rods without severing the wire.

Further objects are to provide a tool for cutting Wire concrete form ties and the like which is simple and inexpensive to manufacture, easy to use, lightweight, rugged, compact; decorative in appearance and adaptable to powered as well as hand operation by the simple expedient of applying well-known impact-producing mechanisms of the mechanical,- electrical, hydraulic or pneumatic types to the basic tool.

Other objects will be in part apparent and in part pointed out specifically hereinafter in connection with the description of the drawing that follows, in which:

Figure :1 is a view, part of which is in section and part in elevation, showing the spaced panels of a concrete form held in fixed spaced relation by a looped-wire concrete form tie and rods passed therethrough with concrete poured into the form and the wire-cutting tool of the present invention positioned to' cut one loop ofthe tie;

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the tool to an enlarged scale, portions of the handle or housing having been shown in section to illustrate the construction thereof and exposethe cutting element; I

Figure 3 is a bottom plan view with the handle shown in diametrical section and a portion of the cutting element broken away toexpose the guide-pin and grooved-track;

Figure 4 is 'a front elevation;

Figure 5 is a section taken along line 5-5 of Figure 3; and,

Figure 6 is an enlarged detail of the top of the dogpoint set screw or pin that-forms the guide.

Referring now to the drawing, reference numeral 10 indicates the wire-cutting tool of the present invention in a general way, and it will be-seen to comprise basically a handle or housing 12 having a substantially cylindrical opening 14'threthrougl1, and a rod-like cutting element 16 mounted for reciprocalsliding movement within the opening in the handle. The cutting element 16 has a ortion'there'of projecting beyond the rear end of the handle 12' in position to be struck by a hammer or other impact-producing instrument and the front end is provided with a wedge-shaped section 18 terminating in a cutting edge 20 having rounded blunt corners 21. These blunt corners prevent nicking of the form tie rods. The central section of the cutting element includes a longitudinal guide-slot 22 while the handle contains a dogpointed set screw 24 providing the pin which fits into the guide-slot and prevents relative rotational movement between the handle and cutter for a reason that will be explained presently. An annular groove 26 encircles the handle in position to intersect the set screw 24 which contains a corresponding groove 28, and a lock ring 30 is attached within the aligned grooves to hold the set screen in place.

The inner end of the handle or housing 12 contains a transverse notch 32 of a width and depth to receive rod 34 of the conventional rod-type panel forming system which, as seen in Figure 1, includes wooden panels 36 arranged in spaced relation and held a fixed distance apart by wire form tie 38 having loops 40 in both ends projecting through openings 42 in the panels. The rods pass through the loops in the tie on the outside of the panels and retain the concrete 44 therebetween. The center line of notch 32 lies in substantially a common plane with edge 20 of the cutter which is maintained in a non-rotatable position by the guide-pin and groovedtrack 24 and 22, thus, with the tool positioned as in Figure 1 so that the rod ties within the notch in the inner end of the handle, cutting edge extends generally in the direction of the length of the rod and is restrained against side-to-side movement relative thereto. The section at the inner end of the handle on the inside surface of the notch 32 contains opposed grooves 46 intersecting the cylindrical opening 14 arranged at approximately right angles to the cutting edge 20 of the element 16. These opposed grooves 46 are of a width and depth to receive the side of the wire loops 40 on the ends of the form tie when the notched-end 32 of handle 12 is located as in Figure 1. Thus, the curved end of the wire loop passes across the opening 14 in the handle and lies at approximately right angles to the cutting edge 20 of the cutter 16. A sharp blow with a suitable striking tool on the outer end of the cutting element is all that is required to sever the loop of the tie and free the rod therefrom so that the panels may be stripped from the concrete. As aforementioned, the notch 32 prevents side to-side movement of the handle. Opposed grooves 46, on the other hand, prevent movement of the handle in the direction of the length of the rod when the wire loop of the form tie is in place therein.

Accordingly, the tool locates the loop of the tie relative to the cutter in such a manner that it must be contacted by the edge 20 and out following a sharp blow on the cutter end with a hammer or other impact-producing device of a mechanical, electrical, hydraulic or pneumatic construction.

Having thus described the several useful and novel features of the wire-cutting tool of the present invention, it will be seen that the many objects for which it was designed have been achieved. Although but a single specific form of the invention has been illustrated and described in connection with the accompanying drawing, I realize that certain changes and modifications may occur to those skilled in the art within the broad teaching found herein; hence, it is my intention that the scope of protection afforded hereby shall be limited only insofar as said limitations are expressly set forth in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A Wire-cutting tool for use in releasing a rod from within a loop in a wire concrete form tie comprising, a handle-forming portion with a longitudinal opening therethrough having an axis, one end of said handleforming portion including a transverse notch extending therethrough intersecting the opening and sized to receive a form rod, and a cutter element non-rotatably mounted within the opening in the handle-forming portion for longitudinal slidable movement, the end of said cutter element adjacent the notched-end of the handleforming portion being formed to provide a cutting edge extending transversely of said element in substantially a common plane with the center line of said notch, and the other end of said cutter element projecting beyond the handle-forming portion in position to receive an impact blow to cut the loop of a wire form tie around a rod within the notch.

2. The device as set forth in claim 1 in which the notched end of the handle-forming portion is provided with opposed grooves within the notch, said grooves extending longitudinally of said handle-forming portion and intersecting the opening, said grooves being sized and adapted to receive and hold the wire loop at an angle transverse to the cutting edge.

3. The device as set forth in claim 2 in which an axial groove means is provided in the cutter element and a pin is provided in the handle-forming portion which cooperates to limit the relative longitudinal movement between said cutter and said handle-forming portion.

4. The device as set forth in claim 2 in which the opposed grooves are positioned to hold the wire loop at approximately right angles to the cutting edge.

5. A wire-cutting tool for use in releasing a rod from within a loop in a wire concrete form tie comprising, a handle-forming portion with a longitudinal opening therethrough having an axis, one end of said handle-forming portion including a transverse notch extending therethrough intersecting the opening and sized to receive a form rod, and a cutter element mounted within the opening in the handle-forming portion for longitudinal slidable movement, the end of said cutter element adjacent the notched-end of the handle-forming portion being formed to provide a cutting edge extending transversely of said element and adapted to lie in substantially a common plane with the center line of said notch, and the other end of said cutter element projecting beyond the handle-forming portion in position to receive an impact blow to cut the loop of a wire form tie around a rod within the notch.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,102,162 Norman June 30, 1914 1,320,191 Ash Oct. 28, 1919 1,613,399 Levedahl Jan. 4, 1927 2,503,288 Moore Apr. 11, 1950 

